rounding out, that he has really done great damage, not only to himself, but to the reputation of law enforcement. >> reporter: nbc bay area was the first to obtain this undercover video showing butler and a former commander of contra costa's drug enforcement team norman welsh taking part in an apparent drug deal. butler has admitted he teamed up with welsh to steal drugs from law enforcement evidence lockers and sell them back on the street. today he choked back tears as he apologized to the community, fellow officers, and his family. >> i think he is genuinely sorry because it was for a 51-year-old person a limited period of his life where he just got off the track. and there are a lot of reasons for it. it's nobody else's fault but his, and he is very sorry. >> reporter: now things could have been much worse for butler. he actually face admin mum of about 12 1/2 years in prison, and that's the sentence the probation officer recommended. but because he has cooperated with the government and agreed to testify against his alleged co-conspirator norman welsh, he got the lighter eight-y